The Governmental Accounting Standards Board has released a white paper articulating the differences between private sector and governmental accounting.

http://www.gasb.org/cs/BlobServer?blobkey=id&blobwhere=1175826684726&blobheader=application%2Fpdf&blobcol=urldata&blobtable=MungoBlobs

Bond Case Briefs

GASB White Paper: Why Governmental Accounting and Financial Reporting Is - And Should Be - Different.